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Language skills are essential to a child’s ability to communicate and develop. These skills enable children to engage with other people and learn from their surroundings and in the classroom.

University of Freiburg launches new science portal, Surprising Science

The University of Freiburg is extending its communicative bounds with a brand new science portal, Surprising Science. Starting today, the university will regularly present exciting new research findings at www.surprising-science.de, some of them in multimedia form. The site will also provide comprehensive background information and news from daily life at the university.

21 Apr 2011

First Edition: April 21, 2011

In today's news, reports about President Barack Obama's Facebook visit during which he stepped up his criticism of GOP plans to overhaul Medicare and Medicaid but said he expects to strike a deal to reduce the deficit.

21 Apr 2011

High rates of suicide in happy places, finds study

The happiest countries and happiest U.S. states tend to have the highest suicide rates, according to research from the UK's University of Warwick, Hamilton College in New York and the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco.

21 Apr 2011

WHO team assesses medical situation in Cote d'Ivoire; EU doubles aid pledge

A WHO team has visited the western region of Cote d'Ivoire to assess damage to the medical system and identify ways to improve access to care, following months of violence after the country's presidential election last year, U.N. News Centre reports.

21 Apr 2011

A cluttered brain doesn't remember

Lapses in memory occur more frequently with age, yet the reasons for this increasing forgetfulness have not always been clear. According to new research from Concordia University, older individuals have reduced learning and memory because their minds tend to be cluttered with irrelevant information when performing tasks.

20 Apr 2011

New study finds treatment-resistant epilepsy common in idiopathic autism

A new study found that treatment-resistant epilepsy (TRE) is common in idiopathic autism. Early age at the onset of seizures and delayed global development were associated with a higher frequency of resistance to antiepileptic drugs (AEDs). Full findings appear online in Epilepsia, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE).

19 Apr 2011

Obama to rally support for his deficit-reduction plan

President Barack Obama will take his message on the road with a "series of campaign-style stops" in an effort to block a Republican deficit-reduction blueprint that would dramatically change Medicare and other social programs.

18 Apr 2011

Bio-IT World honors CliniWorks with 2011 Best Practices Award

CliniWorks Inc., developer of the AccelFind™ clinical evidence and research-acceleration software platform, announced that it received the prestigious Judge's Choice Award in Bio-IT World's 2011 Best Practices Award competition. The Award was received by CliniWorks founders Nitzan Sneh and Udi Meirav in front of a standing-room-only audience at the Boston World Trade Center on April 13, 2011.

18 Apr 2011

First Edition: April 18, 2011

Today's headlines include a report about President Barack Obama's plan to rally support for his deficit reduction plan and to block GOP changes to Medicare and other social programs.

18 Apr 2011

Sarcasm and lie detection failure signals dementia: Study

Researchers have found that inability to recognize others' insincerity, lies and sarcasm could be a warning sign of a form of dementia. They found that people with frontotemporal dementia - a type of dementia that affects the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain - often lose the ability to detect sarcasm and lies, while people who grow older normally don't experience this.

17 Apr 2011

Human voice links us all together, helps define us as human beings: U-M Vocal Health Center director

In recognition of World Voice Day on April 16, Norman D. Hogikyan, M.D., professor of otolaryngology at the University of Michigan Medical School and director of the U-M Vocal Health Center, reminds us not only to think about vocal health, but the ways in which the human voice influences our lives and unites us.

16 Apr 2011

Crisis communication lessons from Japan's tsunami disaster

Adam Acar and Yuya Muraki of the Kobe City University of Foreign Studies surveyed and questioned Twitter users and tracked updates from people in the disaster-struck area on the social media site two weeks after the Tohoku earthquake and devastating tsunami of March 11. They hoped to determine what benefits such a system can bring to people involved in a disaster and to those hoping to hear news.

16 Apr 2011

Researchers classify chronic ulcerative stomatitis as a new autoimmune disease

In the first study investigating the origins of a little-known condition called chronic ulcerative stomatitis, researchers at Tufts University School of Dental Medicine provide evidence that an autoimmune response contributes to the painful oral sores that characterize the disease. The study findings support the classification of CUS as a new autoimmune disease.

15 Apr 2011

New research: MRI can help detect early stage Alzheimer's disease

New research suggests that magnetic resonance imaging could help detect Alzheimer's disease at an early stage, before irreversible damage has occurred, according to a new study published online and in the June print edition of Radiology.

12 Apr 2011

Planned Parenthood funding a major stumbling block in budget negotiations

On the brink of a painful government shutdown, the Obama administration readied furlough notices for hundreds of thousands of workers Friday as Republican and Democratic leaders accused each other of refusing to give ground on a deal to keep operations running. ... Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid accused the Republicans of blocking a compromise because they were determined to make it harder 'for women to get cancer screenings' -- a Planned Parenthood funding reference.

11 Apr 2011

Brain 'talks' to computer by saying/thinking of a particular sound

Patients with a temporary surgical implant have used regions of the brain that control speech to "talk" to a computer for the first time, manipulating a cursor on a computer screen simply by saying or thinking of a particular sound.

8 Apr 2011

Canadian political parties called upon to focus on health system during election campaign

The Health Action Lobby today called on all political parties to focus on the health system during the federal election campaign. HEAL is a coalition of 35 national health organizations that represents a broad cross-section of health providers, health regions, institutions & facilities.

8 Apr 2011

Sibling ‘squabbles’ good for the youngest child: Study

According to the latest research from the University of Cambridge sibling rivalry and fighting between siblings increase the social skills, vocabulary and emotional development of younger brothers and sisters. They found that the competitiveness acquired from regular tiffs with the elder sibling may make the second child more popular and successful at school, and in later life.

7 Apr 2011

New USPSTF mammography recommendations confuse women

When the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF), an independent panel of experts in primary care and prevention, released its recommendations on mammography screenings for US women on November 16, 2009, there was immediate and considerable controversy.

7 Apr 2011

Early Intensive Behavioural Intervention in autism continues to be questioned in Quebec

Early Intensive Behavioural Intervention, the most highly recommended, comprehensively researched and universally recognized treatment for autism, continues to be questioned, underfunded and ultimately threatened - but only in Quebec.

6 Apr 2011